The Aberrant Hero and the Battle for Ooo
by Jaystick
Summary: Taking place after restoring Prismo to life, further into a future of grim realities, a world of hardship and hurt unfolds in Finn's life the likes of which should never have happened. Even in Finn's wildest dreams, he'd never have thought to be standing where he is now. (The tag says tragedy, and that's kinda right, but then also not)/(romance) - Darker twists here and there.
1. The Battle for Ooo -- Part 1

**Author's**** notes: I've written a grand majority of this because I wanted to see more stories with the darker side of what could happen. What if a few things hadn't gone the way they were supposed to? What if Finn really had blown it and there's no recourse for his actions? Except for, of course, doing his duty. **

**I'm still writing the chapter for my other story. I haven't stopped with that, I'm just exploring more ideas until I start writing something I really like.**

**Well, I hope you enjoy part 1, leave criticisms and comments in your reviews, please! Heaven knows I need 'em.**

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Finn stood at the abyss of the Flame Ruler. The girl he had once loved, and truthfully still loved, had just committed the ultimate act of betrayal toward all of Ooo and too himself. In the name of her people, she lashed out, marring the continent with the last of her Fire Giant's. The abyss, as Finn refers to it, was once a thriving ecosystem, home to countless lives. But because it was so close to the fire kingdom, and Phoebe being pressured into expansion by the responsibilities of her crown, took it by force. What shocked Finn the most, was that all in all, not even the thought of killing to achieve her goals had stopped her hand. Finn had loved her so, and now those feelings that he had toward her are mixing with the righteous fury of the now mature hero. If it meant bringing down a threat to innocent people, to others he still cared about greatly, then he would even fight someone like Phoebe.

Finn had spent much time in the land of Ooo since his relationship with the Flame Princess. He had grown to be clever in battle and lethal with his sword. His strength and stamina had tripled, his agility ironically inhuman, and as far as warriors go, there were none fiercer or as brave as Finn. The once happy go-lucky kid he used to be had, sadly, hardened into someone a lot more serious. He wouldn't let the memory of his brother fade by dying. Finn was better than that. And so, now, although he still had a lot to learn, he was now a force that could change the tide of any war.

The sky crackled with the sound of molten rock as bits of it plummeted to Ooo. Flame Princess had caused a volcano in the surrounding region to erupt, thereby supporting her ground troops immensely. The armies that marched to meet her were at a serious disadvantage when it came to the environment. The Flame Kingdom was known for being one of the most powerful and it's soldiers were certainly among the most competent. Among the armies were the Candy Kingdom and the Wildberry Kingdom. These two nations made up the majority of the force. There were, however, smaller units to count on. Princess Bubblegum had fairly easily convinced the Ice King to fight with her, promising him something in return. Glob know's whatever that might be. So along with having a dangerous Ice Wizard in a battle against fiery opponents, there were also the smaller and yet somehow powerful penguins that came with him. I shouldn't need to mention the time when the penguins marched on and conquered the Candy Kingdom all by themselves.

Princess Bubblegum did not go into this battle with her regular force, however. She had created a new breed of fighter to stand on her front lines. These hulking brutes were the size of a shack and were creatures made of a strange rocky-road ice cream mixture. In their left hand, they were armed with a large and thick jawbreaker shield that was easily the size of a mature trunk of tree. In their right, a large maul that sported yet more jawbreaker attached by several threads of the toughest black licorice they could forge. She had chosen jawbreaker for this fight as she had noticed the material was resistant to just about every force of nature imaginable, and molten lava was not excluded. These things were war machines, and Bubblegum had made enough so that for every two columns of normal soldiers, one of these stood abreast to another. With the size of Bubblegums army, that was easily twenty brutes. I shouldn't casually mention the regulars, either, for they weren't actually the normal corp of soldiers. They were dressed head to toe in a jawbreaker armor, sword and shield all at the ready.

Now, for Finn, nothing mattered except for that he wanted to be the one who personally took down Phoebe. He took a step forward, standing at the top of aforementioned abyss. The abyss was nothing more than a steep crater, still steaming from the blast of that evil war machine. With that step, and let himself fall forward over the edge and down the incline. As his foot made contact with ground, he put all his strength into a leap and catapulted down the charred hill, heading straight for the valley. His legs worked with all the might they could afford, swiftly vaulting rocks and sudden geysers of steam that erupted from the ground. About halfway down, a large chunk of molten rock landed near him, and Finn had dove to avoid getting hit. This didn't really slow him down in the slightest. He was as fierce and determined as ever, and even against Phoebe he wouldn't pull his punches. He unsheathed his sword, the sword that was made from his time counterpart when Jake and Finn had restored Prismo to his former life. He let it drag behind him as he ran. He had only just now drawn his sword because it would slow him down, and down on the field, the battle was already raging. As he got closer, he noticed Flame Princess had other war machines to deploy.

Saying that these were war machines was an understatement. One of these beasts was the size a large house, easily triple the size of one of Bubblegum's ice cream brutes. It definitely had the bite to go along with its bark. Coming off the hillside, Finn rushed to flank the beast, several of Bubblegum's forces having already engaged it from the front. They were easily being smacked away by the things large arms, but not for long. Finn made it to the beasts leg and jumped up onto one of its uneven boulders. The boulders which composed the giant allowed him to easily climb it. As he went along, he swung his sword into its side, making a large mark as he went to find its head. The beast was bellowing and jerking, now fully aware of the pesky human's presence. With one last groan, the beast clawed at it's shoulder where Finn now stood, but it was too late. Finn swung his ethereal sword into and through the beasts rock skin, cleaving it in half, and then vaulted off backward. No armor had ever stood a chance against his sword before, and it didn't seem anything was about to start now. The sword, seemingly made of energy, had elongated in the moment of the swing, slicing clean through the head, down to the pelvis of the monster. With that, there was a large groaning of something similar to a building falling apart, and then the belated crumbling of the giant. Finn landed with grace on the other side of the rubble. He had done that maneuver many times on large foes, so he had plenty of time to perfect it. Behind him, the soldiers of the Candy Kingdom and Wildberry kingdom gawked in awe. What they couldn't do as an army, Finn could do in a matter of seconds.

With the defeat of such a great beast, he could hear the forces rally behind him, their morale greatly boosted. Taking the cue to carve a path forward to the Flame Princess, Finn did exactly that. With every foe, big or small, Finn made sure to dispatch it quickly, attracting a larger and therefore a more organized force behind him. What was once a battle that anyone could have won, was quickly turning against the favor of the land of fire. He was fighting not just for himself, but to make amends. All those years ago he hadn't acted very justful toward Phoebe, and maybe that led to the way she is now, but that isn't an excuse for Finn to let her be anymore. It's not within Finn to let anyone walk over innocent people, no matter how many laughs they had shared together, and no matter how much it will hurt should he have to kill her.

As he pushed the Flame Kingdom's front lines, he could feel the enemies soldiers beginning to waver more and more. The rumors of the human fighting like some sort of unstoppable machine had begun to spread down the ranks of both sides it seemed. Rumors and legends were a powerful way to win a war. If you defeat the enemy in their own mind, then you have already won. That was showing to be very true this day. Though, it was due in no small part to Finn's sword. The sword of which could transform itself into any shape he deemed fit, it having an ample reach as well. As long as it wasn't longer than the width of a creek, Finn could stretch his weapon that far. Combining the destructiveness of his sword with his uncanny ability on his feet, his talent at tumbling through the swings of his opponents and counter-striking, made him an utterly terrifying champion. Speaking of champions, Finn had heard that Cinnamon-bun was out there somewhere, next to his Princess as her knight-at-arms. He wouldn't be much of a threat. While he considered Cinnamon-bun to be mostly a blundering fool, he also knew that he had a way of utilizing his incredible luck to his advantage.

After slaughtering rank after rank of foot soldiers, he began to think he would never spot a sign of the Flame Princess. He was mostly correct in his thinking, but he did however see her brother. That megalomaniac despot was floating in the sky, doing nothing but charring and roasting wildberry soldiers and any candy soldier unlucky enough to have lost their jawbreaker shield. Even from the distance Finn was, over the clattering and clashing of weapons, he could hear him cackling like a mad man. This enraged Finn. Finn had killed his fair share, but he didn't think very highly of it. He did it as his duty, not as a pleasure. So, Finn immediately switched gears and began to push in his direction, jumping onto the face of a common Flame soldier and catapulting off. He ran over the crowd of enemies, staying at the side of who he could now tell was Flint, the most horrid of Phoebe's brothers. And just like with the rock beast, by the time Flint had noticed Finn approaching him, it was too late. Finn had catapulted off the last soldier and flying tackled into Flint, knocking them both to the ground.

Flint had just barely managed to regain his composure when he found himself knocking away a blow of Finn's sword with a heated blast. Flint wouldn't go down near as easily as the other soldiers. He knew how to use his own energy, how to turn his very arms into swords if need be.

"You.. you're that human boy. Oh man, I didn't think I'd get the pleasure of roasting you myself." Came Flint, his voice seething with nothing but bloodlust.

"You know, she used to talk about you a lot. Used to come home all happy and content, it was actually kind of gross." Flint seemed to be talking with more tact now, taking a sidestep for every pause. Oddly enough no one from either army challenged them as they stood there. Finn never dropped his guard, though.

"Yeah, that was until she came home crying one day." Flint's position and demeanor changed a good deal. He took a stance that would leave him well guarded against attacks. Those last words had managed to put a chink in his armor.

"She cried?" Finn thought. "She seemed so put together when she left me.." That stung him harder than he thought, because this time it was Finn who found himself deflecting one of Flint's blows. Finn quickly turned his sword and glanced the fireball off of it, but gave up no ground.

"Of course she cried, she's not a monster. Or at least wasn't.." came Finn's thoughts again.

"Yeah kid, she cried. That what happens when you betray someone, like people are always going to do to Flame Citizens." It didn't seem like Flint was fighting just to kill now after all. He was fighting for his people, and it seemed he was also fighting to protect the honor of his sister.

As noble as that thought was, it made Finn straighten back up.

"I'm sorry she cried. I'm sorry that I did that to her, but that doesn't mean I'm going to lay down my sword and let her kill thousands of people." Finn spoke in a manner that revealed little of what he was feeling, it revealed no regret. With an exaggerated exhale, he dashed toward Flint, feinting to his left, causing him to put up his arm in an energized state to block it. But, as quickly as Finn had dashed forward, he had switched his sword hand, expertly tossing it to his other arm (working off of the feint) and slashed clean through Flint's armor and right arm. It seemed if he wasn't ready for it, Flint couldn't block the sword. Finn knew that there was no way Flame Princess would forgive him now. He had just cut off Flint's arm - and he wasn't about to let him get away. Flint in that moment had jumped back, a reflexive recoil from his sudden loss of limb. Finn guessed he expected it to grow back, but when it didn't, he became enraged and his body began glowing white hot.

"What the hell did you do to me?!" Flint screamed through agony and hatred. Flint charged without giving him a moment to respond. That was the fatal move. Charging in a with blind rage as your weapon is a bad match up to someone that can remain calm and collected. With a simple reflexive sidestep and a downward slash, Finn had caught Flint down the middle with his strange sword, his turning a cold grey. It startled Finn how easily the sword went through him, meeting no resistance even when he hit his obsidian-crafted chest-plate armor. Though it's not like obsidian is actually a strong material.

The remains of Flint were flung forward, the momentum from his charge caused his split armor and dressings to clamor into the ground along with the last bit of his energy turning into a grey puff of smoke. Immediately, the area around the death quieted down. There were surrounding gasps from Flame soldiers, and faint cheers from what sounded like Wildberry Kingdom vanguards. This was a fatal blow to the opposing army. With a member of the royal line defeated in full view, the Flame Kingdom's army should have little to no morale or will to fight. From here on out, they should be retreating out of the crater and back to whatever base they have.

"Surely," Finn thought, "That's where I'll find Phoebe."

Finn did not, however, immediately pursue. He had been fighting all day, and his body was beginning to feel the weight of all those he had slain. Finn watched as streams of Flame Kingdom foot soldiers retreated around him, the allied armies cheering from behind.

"This is great," Finn thought. "This means we're winning. But.." Finn's inner voiced trailed off. "But.. why am I crying?" Finn shocked himself by what he just thought. He was crying? He lifted a hand to his face and felt the betraying wetness of emotion that had leaked through his facade. His gilded attitude was finally crumbling under the duress.

"But, why? I'm doing the right thing aren't I? Aren't I, Jake?" The warrior was now holding back a torrential downpour and glancing at the armor of the defeated Flint only made it harder. With a sharp inhalation, much like a sob, he walked to the armor and painfully fell to his knees. He looked upon Flint through blurry vision.

"If this is… right.. why do I feel so disgusting. Jake? I don't want to kill her, Jake. I don't… I don't want to kill.. Oh Glob, when did I start killing like it was nothing? Is that what heroes do?" Finn's magic sword dissipated, as if sensing that it's master had lost the will to fight. That's never happened before, but for now, he didn't care. He didn't so much as pay it any heed when it disappeared. Finn sat on his knees for a long time, staring into the sky and letting tears stream down his face. The ash from the volcano still was falling to Ooo, but the large rocks seemed to have stopped falling some time ago.

After the armies had mostly left the crater, leaving just a large and open space, a candy-convoy drove up next to him. In one of the carriages was the ever regal Princess Bubblegum who had taken notice of Finn the Human. A guard opened the door to her carriage, and she walked down the stairs built into it, dressed in some type of military getup. Finn's eyes were red and puffy, the eighteen year-old still had some kid left in him after all. Bubblegum walked over and took a breath as if to say something, but instead knelt beside him and tenderly hugged him.

"I'm sorry, Finn."

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Somewhere over the ridge, there stood a grand building that shone with a dark brightness. The dark and glassy material glistened strangely in the afternoon sun. The Flame Princess sat on her throne with an odd look of distaste. She used the throne's armrest to prop up her head with her hand. It was there that she had received the news of Flint's demise, but she only reacted when she heard it was Finn that had killed him. It wasn't a violent reaction, mind you. She showed surprise on her features - and then a look of sadness toward the messenger.

"Thank you... You may leave." Flame Princess' voice was noticeably shaky, but she kept strong.

"Finn's here?" she thought. Her red-amber eyes had come to see much, but this is one thing she wished to not be a witness of.

"He won't get away with this, not again. Not after what he's done to me, and now to my Kingdom." Flame Princess' expression of sadness turned to one of warlike determination.

"If he wants wants to fight me, he'll get that chance." The emblazoned ruler stood up from her throne, "Is the Giant prepared to fire again?" A fire elemental to her right flank stepped forward and bowed slightly, "It's almost ready, your majesty." Obviously satisfied with that news, she nodded and took her leave for her quarters.

"Oh Finn," she sighed, "I don't know what you're trying to do, but it won't work."

The next morning, Finn found himself under one of the tents of the Candy Kingdom. He couldn't remember much of what had happened the previous night, just that he had come back to the base of operations and gone to bed. He was sure that something had happened before that, though. Finn rose and dressed in his usual attire. This consisted of his iconic hat that would cover his now shoulder-length hair. His shirts he had been choosing slightly differently, opting for lighter blue versions of the kind he had when he was fourteen. Finn stopped and clutched at his heart. Thinking of his time when he was fourteen brought back a lot of happy memories, and then a lot of painful ones too. When Jake had died, Finn had shut off. There was no one left in the world that he could communicate on his own level to. It was that day he had to learn to shut it out, all the pain. He couldn't take it anymore. His heart was broken, his best friend was gone, and now today, back to the present, he might have to kill someone he still truly cares for. Finn's life had so many short up's and lots of steep down's. He wondered if things kept going this way, he'll hit what they call "rock bottom." He slipped on his shirt, pulled his hat over, and took one last look at himself in a nearby mirror. It reflected the visage of a young man, tall and fair-skinned. His blue irises were as bright as ever. However, they used to be filled with so much more soul. Now anyone that looked at him could tell he was becoming more and more cold, more empty. He wished this war had never happened.

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**Don't worry, I'll elaborate on the whole "Jake" thing later on. I'm trying to write this story as if I had pulled it from the middle of a historical event I guess. It's a chronicle, so to speak.**


	2. The Battle for Ooo -- Part 2

**Author's note: I'll try and finish every story I start, but I really feel like I needed to write this and maybe something else first. As always, I'd appreciate any reviews of criticism and praise no matter how harsh or overly sweet they may be.**

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_**The Morning of Courage**_

Outside, the sun had made first light over the horizon. The brilliant morning light shone through the trees like it would on any other cool, peaceful morning. Except, today wouldn't be peaceful. Within a matter of hours, Finn knew he would be back in the fray, and all he would see would be red and grey. Shaking his head, he stepped away from his tent, taking in the full scene around him. There were numerous campfires and tents all around. Only a few people were up, but the morning horn had begun to sound as Finn finished his scan. It wouldn't be long now. Finn roamed the encampment until he came to a strange caravan with lots of guards. On closer inspection, the guards were standing in front of what looked to be weapon racks lined with all different shapes and sizes of arms. Weapons! _My swords not back. I should definitely get something to replace it for now._ He had tried willing it back earlier, pretending to unsheath it from the spot where his scabbard hung over his shoulder, but to no avail. _Maybe it's gone for good or something-_

"Hey Finn!" The warped figure that was once Simon Petrikov floated over to where he stood. His beard, as huge as it is, was splitting and closing repeatedly, pushing off a gust of air beneath him.

"Yeah, I heard you were a rockstar on the battlefield, friend. You killed dozens of 'em, even taking out Captain Hot-Head over there!" Ice King chuckled to himself about it, however his words were only starting to rile Finn up. He didn't like killing, and after his breakdown yesterday he was going to avoid as much as possible whilst stopping this madness. He'd made up his mind in the tent that, no matter what, he was going to stay his hand unless it really just can't be helped. He didn't want to finally have to face the Flame Princess, the girl who he once cherished so dearly, and have to slay her because of all the blood on his sword already. _Though it may be too late,_ the echoes of Finn's mind rang. _I killed her brother! There's no way she'd forgive me for that! _As Finn's features began to betray his feelings, he could feel the proof of his sadness begin to well up in his eyes once again. He stood in the middle of the now semi-bustling camp, clenching his fists and eyes shut. His hands were turning white from the stress of bearing his sadness, shaking intensely. _Knock it off, Finn! Pull yourself together or you'll be of no use. Go get a weapon like you said you were. _He put his fists next to his head as if he were fighting a boxing match with his self. Slowly, he let go of his pain and looked ahead through the tears. He took his shirt's sleeve and dried his face, leaving behind a faint mark of wetness on his light-blue cloth.

The merchant in charge of the caravan had just finished bargaining, his blue and starry robe showing off his taste in expensive materials. His face was a bronze-yellow hue, his hair a curled mess. It took Finn a moment to realize that this merchant was actually the "King of Ooo." _Of all the people to be selling weapons in a camp of the Candy Kingdom_, thought Finn. _I think I'll go check out a different vendor. _Finn walked past, and as he did he could tell the King of Ooo had taken notice when he decided to pull the hood of his robe over. Not like he really could hide in that outfit. A little further down, around the otherside of the caravan, an old and familiar face registered to Finn. _Choose Goose! Never thought I'd be happy to see him._ As he approached, he saw something behind the goose, who, still looked as oddly boneless as ever.

"Well hello Finn the Hero! Care to spend some of your glorious dinero?" Came the Choose Goose, his love of rhymes still perfectly intact. "I uh, I'm sorry to hear about Jake, friend. He was a good friend to us all. So, say, how about I let my prices fall? Eh?"

"Hey thanks Choose Goose, that means a lot." Finn greeted him with a smile happy and was happy to know that their friendship had counted for something after all. Without a moments hesitation, he asked about what he could now tell was a shimmering, blue long sword.

"Oh, that? That sword is made from a special cobalt. It's definitely not your average blade to behold! Beholt?" Apparently, even after all these years he still hadn't improved much with rhyming.

"A word of warning, though! Cobalt's not necessarily strong, so I can't say if it'll last long!" Something about the blade kept bugging Finn, though. It's blue color must have him entranced he guessed. And besides, this will give him the excuse he needs to stay out of combat as much as possible.

"How much?" Finn was already getting into his backpack to pull out his coin-purse.

"You're serious? After what I just said? Ah, you know what Finn, just take it. I couldn't sell the sword if I thought you'd end up dying with it!"

"Uh, thanks Choose Goose, but you know you weren't really rhyming there?"

"Yeah whatever kid. Just don't die or I'll flip my lid." Choose Goose flapped his arms around, as if to show his concern.

Choose Goose stretched his arms out behind him and pulled the blue sword from it's weapon rack. He put it in it's sheath held it out to the bewildered hero. _Has Choose Goose ever just given me something for free before? I don't remember. _Finn took the sword in hand, feeling the rough texture of the sheath on his skin. Since his right shoulder already bore an empty sheath, he decided to mirror it by strapping it on the other one, forming an 'x' where they crossed on his back. Now feeling like he could jump back into the fray, he stepped back from the stand and waved to Choose Goose.

Choose Choose called out behind the hero's back, "Good luck, Finn! I'm sure you'll win in the end!" Finn looked back for a moment to see the bird waving his arm back, and Finn took off into a run through the crowds of people that were now awake. Finn noticed soldiers of all kinds: from Banana guards, candy corn, candy-kernels, to something it took all his force not to run into. As he'd rounded a corner, he'd almost sped into the butt of one of the ice cream behemoths. _Dunno where they'd have found a big enough tent for him, _Finn mused. He ran back to the middle of the camp. Princess Bubblegum had asked him to meet her in the war-room sometime after the morning fanfare had played. _Well, she didn't say exactly -when- after the horn had blown to be there._

"I TOLD YOU TO GET HERE WHEN THE HORN SOUNDED, NOT AFTER IT!" Princess Bubblegum's voice reached an odd mixture of high throated irritation, and that just reminded Finn of all the other times she'd been mad at him. Though this was probably different. _Oh, so maybe she DID say.._

"I'm sorry princess, I was out buying a sword. I've lost my other one." Finn was bowing before her, hoping the show of respect might tame her anger.

She sighed, "I suppose it was my fault for not re-iterating when exactly you were supposed to be here. I'll let it slide this time. But that doesn't change the fact that you missed the strategy meeting." Princess Bubblegum brought her finger to her face and looked to the ceiling of the tent. "Wildberry Princess came here with her generals to work out the details of the plan a little before the horn sounded, so I suppose it wouldn't have mattered if you were on time or not." She brought her gaze back to the hero who was still bowing. "Uh Finn, you can relax now."

An sudden exhale revealed Finn's relief. Standing upright, he looked at his commander and princess, "So, then what is the plan?"

"The plan, young hero, is to find a way to deactivate their machine before they fire it again. It was a mistake of me to have let them keep even that one, it seems." Princess Bubblegum continued, "I'm giving you the job of sneaking past the armies and getting into their main camp. I'm sure you'll find that treacherous girl and her advisors there, but Finn, please resist the urge to confront her. I -need- you to disable that machine."

Finn didn't feel so sure that he could resist that urge, but he sighed, "Okay princess, I'll do my best. The last thing I want is for anymore of Ooo to become a fiery pit."

"Okay Finn, I believe in you. We've gotten a report that the Flame armies are already beginning to mobilize, so I'll be sounding the battle call soon. I want you to follow the army in, but not engage anyone you don't have to. Since we've forced them out of the crater, they're practically sitting at their own gates." Bubblegum turned to the rest of the tent and moved to the side of the room. There was a large beam standing in the middle of the tent to hold it up, with a huge table on the otherside. It looked like a giant map of Ooo was pinned to it, and other than that, the room was empty save for a strongbox Finn saw the princess pull a strange, pink vial from.

"Finn, once the fighting starts, you need to find a place to drink this. It's a chameleon potion. It'll give you all the appearance of a Flame soldier regular, height and build and all. It'll only last a couple hours, so you'll have to be fast about it." The candy ruler stepped next to Finn, who was now the same height as her. This fact took a second to sink in before she handed him the potion. _He's grown up so much already._

Finn saw the look on Bubblegum's face, but decided not to question anything. He was eager to get out there and disable that machine. He took the vial and placed it in his backpack, making sure to set it in a pouch that was plenty sturdy.

"Alright, go and get ready Finn." With those words, Bubblegum went around Finn to the exit. Finn followed soon after, stepping outside just as the order for the battle call had gone through. With the blaring sound of the trumpets, Finn was amazed at how quickly all the soldiers of the camp started gathering their armor and weapons, all pouring into one direction. He realized he probably should be doing this too, and started running in the direction everyone else was. He came to a large clearing where the soldiers began changing from a chaos of people and into a form of ranks and columns. He decided he'd stand to the side, and noticed there was what seemed to be a quickly setup podium; probably for Princess Bubblegum to give some sort of encouraging speech. As if on cue, Bubblegum appeared behind the podium, Colonel Candy-Corn standing at her side.

"My loyal subjects!" Rang the princess' voice. Everyone was standing at attention, giving her their full respect. "In a matter of a few hours, this ridiculous war should be over! If you fight your hardest for the glory of the Candy Kingdom, you can prevent anymore of us from being killed by that machine. You are the reason we can fight back against this tyrannical force! Protect those around you, and they'll shield you in return. On the field, you are all a family, so you need to watch out for each other! Do this, for me? I want as many of you to return as safely as possible! Fight with all your heart, people!" By the time the princess had finished speaking, her face had almost changed to a full red. With that final yell, she stepped down from the podium and the gathered army lifted their arms, "FOR THE CANDY KINGDOM!"

Moving with rehearsed precision, the army moved out one rank at a time, forming a condensed line of soldiers. They were marching now, toward the direction of fire and flame, the molten hills of the Flame Kingdom. Though they wouldn't be attacking the kingdom itself, their goal would be to attack the Flame camp setup around the machine. Finn followed suit, moving alongside the army, feeling like he could accomplish his goal no matter what now.

It wasn't long before the temperature of the air began to shift. The nearer they got to the land of molten rock, the hotter and hotter it would get as well. With his sword on his back and his mission in front, Finn rushed to the front of the moving army. He noticed another group of soldiers moving in the same direction to his left. The Wildberry Kingdom's troops were aligning with the Candy troops, effectively doubling the force in size. After marching a few miles, the heat was already having an adverse effect on the troops. It wasn't the same as it was in the crater. The ground there may have been unstable, but there wasn't any residual heat after the initial blast had dissipated.. Finn could feel himself begin to perspire as well. He started hoping that that chameleon potion would do more than change his appearance, so that way he wouldn't be hurt by any stray fire.

In front of him, he noticed what looked to be the frontline of the enemy army forming up. It was about half a mile away, and the hill he and the allied armies were marching down gave a decent view of the surrounding landscape and war machine they were protecting. Taking another look at the army, he saw how huge it actually was. There were tens of thousands of flame soldiers lining up. Several battalions looked to be hundreds strong. Even with the force of both allied kingdoms, that army was still quite a bit larger. This however, didn't shake his confidence. If anything, it reinforced the idea that he needed to finish his job as soon as possible.

The allied armies kept marching until someone at about the middle of the lines blew a horn. The horn sounded like it was being played in pattern, and to follow up, the lines began to form out. Both the Candy-Kingdom and Wildberry Kingdom setup to match the width of the Flame army. Though not quite as wide, the soldiers (as much as they could for being candy and berries) looked determined and fierce. With yet another call of the horn, the soldiers began drawing their weapon in unison. Finn had decided to stay behind the friendly ranks until the fighting really started, that way he could sneak off and use the potion.

With the soldiers ready, a final resounding trumpet blast sent the soldiers forward, walking at first to close the distance. About halfway there, they began to run at the opposing army. The sound of metal and reinforced jawbreaker colliding filled with air in a matter of seconds. Bodies were being thrown about by some of the ice cream giants, leading the rampage. Their giant hammers and shields being used as tools to send as many flame warriors flying and damaged as possible. It was quite a scene to witness, but Finn was behind it all. He noticed that a couple ice cream giants and ganged up on one of the rock beasts. Surprisingly enough, the beast was felled after a couple hard blows to its legs, making it crumble to the ground with the sound of an avalanche. _I can use those boulders it dropped as cover! _Without wasting a moment, Finn was in a full sprint toward the dead rock. He dove in the midst of the rubble, and dug into his backpack. There he found the vial untainted, and quickly moved to drink it.

Uncorking it, he moved the vial to his lips, and closed his eyes as the contents flooded his tongue. _It tasted like, gravy?_ _I thought at least it would taste sweet._ Finn sat crouched for a moment, but nothing happened. _Huh, maybe it doesn't wo- _He was cut off, as finally a light engulfed him, morphing his form. He felt no different, but his arms and legs became as fire, his chest replaced with the standard obsidian armor, and his head was set ablaze, losing its corporeal form in the process. He did, however, retain his swords and scabbards, they having changed little in the process. Finn erected his back, looking out over the boulders.

"Alright Flame Princess, I'm going to stop you from hurting anymore people. I still don't believe that you could've done all this, even for the sake of your kingdom." Finn lifted his arms, clenching his fists that were now little more than fireballs. _I know you're not evil FP, so why? Why is this happening? I'll get an answer out of you if I have to die trying._ Finn shook his head, "No, the mission comes first," he said aloud. "I swear, I'll stop this."

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**Again, please review and criticise if need be. I don't always completely proof read, but I do try to skim back over what I've written to make sure that things make sense.**

**In the next chapter, I delve into what remains of Finn and FP's love life. As I want this to be a 3 or 4 part mini-series, I'll be wrapping it up soon. I promise if it hasn't been so interesting thus far, it will be in the next chapters. Aaaand I'll use this as a hint that I really need to spice it up. :D**


	3. The Battle for Ooo -- Part 3

**Sorry for the slow update guys, but colleges are gonna college. Loads 'o work and tests and whatnot. Anyway! **

**Thanks for the reviews! I'll keep writing as long as people keep reading and reviewing. And as for my other fanfiction I have going on right now: although I'm not a huge fan of the Marceline/Finn ship, (obviously I'm more Flame/Finn if this story doesn't reveal that) I wanted to write it as a means for practice. I will do my best to make it a good story, just as I will do my best for this story as well. Describe the background and scenes, don't tell- is what my teachers preach. I'm still getting that hang of that.**

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**Part 3**

_I know I **just** said I'd stop this, but, "_**OH MY GLOB!**" Finn was in full sprint, bobbing and weaving through a crowd of almost laughably aimless fighters. The cherry bombs of the Wildberry Kingdom were exploding with their trademark red flare and scent of berries, and when Finn began to run from the now friendly fire, his 'fellow' Flame Kingdom army began to shoot at him with their searing fireballs presumably for being a coward, Finn guessed. It wasn't as if he was running because he was scared, he was just trying to make it past the clashing armies. Beyond the armies was his goal, somewhere in the camp of black stone that stood just a ways past the last line of the Flame Kingdom's finest. The armies, both allied and enemy had no idea their battle was a diversion for Finn to sneak in completely transmogrified by the power of the pink-purple vial.

At last, he emerged from a cloud of smoke in a tumble roll, coughing out what had slipped into his lungs with explosive force. His physical appearance had fully changed with no remains of his human self, but his human traits still seemingly remained underneath the impressively false exterior. He knew this was true when he could feel the trademark excessive heat of the Flame Kingdom radiate into his skin. He didn't know if the vial was helping him survive the heat or not, just that, again, he looked different. He decided he didn't want to test his limits, having spent probably what was close to an hour already in the form. _Two hours she said? Well, that's great, Princess. Maybe you should've just given me flame shield and I could've just stormed the place. _Finn shook his head, reeling at the silliness of the idea. _As if that would work. _With a sudden sinking feeling, Finn grasped the air where his sword should be. _Nothing. Great! I lose my sword, so I buy a new one. I buy another sword, and this potion hides it from me. I can't win!_

With a sigh, Finn looked up at the sight that was now before him. Large rectangular buildings, most of which having no features to describe other than being made of a black, glossy rock. He couldn't even tell if they had doors. In fact, to Finn, they were more like monoliths than actual buildings. They weren't particularly beautifully shaped, and that's not surprising since the Fire Kingdom wasn't known for it's architecture. _Just for it's temper, army, and pretty que-_ "No!" Finn stood there, shaking his head yet again. _Come on Finn, get a grip. She's probably shifted her entire alignment back to evil. She's probably found someone in those years you were away. On top of that, she's killed so many people! Right?_ Finn thought about that for a moment. He frowned and looked back at the enraged armies. When Finn was told about the destruction that the blaze had caused, he was informed it had hit a densely populated area. _But.. the crater is only a few miles from here.._ _near their Kingdom. No one really lived there- Bah! I'm sure Bubblegum wouldn't lie to me about that, right? _With a huff, his head groaned back to the Flame Kingdom's base of operations. _Well, either way, shutting off that weapon and getting answers is still what I'm here to do._ With a final sigh, Finn shot past the buildings, everyone who guarded them had seemingly gone to fight already. _I guess this'll be easier than I imagined._

He roamed the camp, examining all the buildings. He was looking for the one that could possibly house the Princess of Fire herself. That building he would visit personally - after he found the machine first, of course. Finn stopped, a stupefied expression took over his face, mostly because of himself for not noticing it earlier. He shifted his eyes to the sky, resisting the urge for an, "oh duh" moment. A building that was so tall he could see it over the mammoth of rock that happened to be next to him. Finn ran around the corner of the building to get a better look at the one of grand stature. It had multiple black spires that rose into a burnt-orange sky. The light that reflected off the black material gave away subtle hints of what it was made of. The bright and glossy light, was almost making Finn need to shield his eyes from the sheer glare. It looked like the keep of a castle, which he guessed was fitting considering where he was. "Huh.." Finn let this audible slip from his tongue: he was most captivated by the scene. _So much for the Flame Kingdom not being known for their architecture. I bet the control for the war machine could be __**in **__the place where the princess is, too. That makes sense to me. _Finn coughed to himself, because it was mostly just an excuse to seek out the princess and stop the war at the source.

Finn moved to the front of the grand building, the entrance being just as magnificent as the rest of the thing. A contrasting, white rock, cobblestone road led up to the double door entry way, the doors themselves seemed to have been made with an ornately carved and golden gilded stone. What was chiseled on the door, however, brought a sudden onslaught of old and new emotions. It was the emblem of the Flame Princess, or the jewel that was on her forehead. Just the mere sight of the jewel reminded Finn of her face from all those years ago; how she could smile and literally brighten his whole world with the features of her awesomely radiant face. This made Finn sprout a small grin to himself, although he knew that was betraying the reason for his mission, and the reason for being here in the first place. Out of his stupor, Finn knew he shouldn't dawdle and moved to examine the door more extensively. It seemed the awesome doors were suspended from reinforced, shiny steel hinges. There's no way he could just walk in, and there's no way he could simply smash it down with only his power. He'd have to figure something else out.

"Soldier? What are you doing here? You don't look like camp guard." An instantly recognizable female voice came to Finn's ears like the galloping of war horses, igniting his nerves. Finn turned briskly, trying to sell the appearance of the soldier he was masquerading as. In front of him now were two people, and he cursed under his breath as one of them were someone who he had reservations of the utmost kind. Flame Princess had a quizzical, yet forgiving look on her face, as if pondering not only this soldier, but other heavy matters. To her heel was someone much like a well trained guard dog: the candy-knight that she had come to trust with her secrets and power. Cinnamonbun was glaring at Finn - he knew there should be no soldiers here, so he was very suspicious. Finn didn't care though, his face had given way and began to betray the same look he had when gazing upon the door, only now the very source of his feelings was standing a mere three feet from him. She was dressed in her formal ceremonial armor, her hair and eyes were both the red hue of duty and seriousness, and around her neck was something he didn't remember. It was a gold medallion with the image of a red ruby imprinted into it. Her hair flames were moving quickly, like a cat's tail when annoyed - and that's when Finn realized he was staring at her.

"Soldier! Answer your Princess!" Cinnamonbun not being his usual chipper self, brought Finn from the idea of the once ditzy person he was, to the presence of a battle-tested captain. Finn's eyes refocused on Cinnamonbun for a moment, his head flinching as he snapped out of thought.

"Uh.. I'm sorry ma'am! I was told to.." Finn was grasping at straws, he had no idea what to say now. _Come on, think! What would sound believable?_

"To what? What's your name, soldier?" Cinnamonbun was still staring him down, not letting a single facial expression escape him.

"Fii- F- Pherrous! Yes, that's it!" Finn shouted, glad he had come up with a name, although then he realized he hadn't exactly sold it yet.

"Forget your own name, Pherrous?" Cinnamonbun was definitely trying to pick apart Finn's meager disguise now.

"Oh, Cinnamonbun, look at him. He just came from the front lines and is probably dazed." Although her eyes were still glowing red, they had somehow softened with the addition of an obvious pity for a soldier of the battlefield.

"Now then, why **are** you here, Pherrous?" Flame Princess was now looking directly into Finn's eyes. His eyes weren't the usual and obvious shade of blue they once were; the chameleon potion had changed even that, turning his eyes an amber-yellow and contorting the shape of his iris further. If the eyes were the window to the soul, his windows were completely remodeled.

"I'm.. here to…" Finn sighed internally, " tell you that - things aren't going so well on the front, your highness." Finn took a slight bow, hands to his sides and back completely erect. Well, as erect as his back can get when he looks like living fire trapped inside of a shell.

Flame Princess' face scrunched up, her brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

Cinnamonbun stepped forward, "Princess, we really do need to get insi-" He was cut off, and he seemed hurried now, maybe even worried.

"No I want to hear what this soldier has to say. If things aren't going so well on the front, then maybe I'll have to use it to defend the kingdom after all.." Finn could tell those last words left her mouth as if they had been bitter and poignant in that sense.

_After all? She was considering not using it?_ Finn's own brow had risen at this statement, making known his surprise. Which of course, Cinnamonbun, even as hurried as he was now, made note of.

"Princess, as your knight I insist that we go inside, now." Cinnamonbun was seemingly giving her orders, which made Flame Princess turn, yet she only sighed in surrender.

"Alright, alright. We can go in then." Flame Princess gave a look of indifference and motioned to the keep's doors. Cinnamonbun led the way, walking past Finn and bumping him out of the path in the process. Finn stumbled back to the side of the trail, and he was now mentally screaming.

_Stuff! They're going inside and I'll be left out here! _Finn looked at the now passing Flame Princess, though she wasn't returning the gaze anymore. She kept her head straight, and fixated forward. Finn's feelings began to boil in such a way he hadn't thought possible. This is the person whose heart he broke, the person he couldn't protect when he was needed, and the person who he now needed to stop. This was the person that made Finn's heart jump, after everythings that had happened to him over the years.

"Princess!" Finn had blurted out before he had even realized it himself, his fiery face an odd mixture of shock and confidence. He quickly formed a more solemn pose before continuing, the princess having now turned back around to face incognito Finn.

"Finn the Hero is here, your highness." Finn made deadly sure to emphasize the 'here' part of that statement.

Flame Princess' features barely registered any hint of feeling. Her face only seemed to grow more apathetic to him now.

"If that's true, maybe he'll finally learn today."

"Ma'am?" Came Finn, truly puzzled by such a forthright yet enigmatic statement.

"For what he's doing now, he's no hero." Flame Princess had given no more emotion in her face for this statement than her last.

Finn felt, well, he didn't know what he felt. The girl he once had shared laughs and friendly banter with, had just called into question his very existence. It was something that plagued him even now, especially after killing flint: was he truly a hero?

Shaking his head, Finn made himself speak more, "Please, Flame Princess, I ask that you let me escort you with your knight. I admired your brother, and I was there when he had died. I had heard him defend your honor when he fought Finn, and I wish to somehow help defend you personally if it should so come."

Flame Princess' gaped at the soldier while Cinnamonbun stood scoffing, having once more stopped to wait for the princess.

"He defended me? What do you mean?" She had taken a fond interest of that, strangely enough to Finn.

"He told the human about you, about.. well.. your days with him. And this made Flint attack with ferocity when he talked about one day in particular. I'm sorry your majesty." Finn looked at the girl who was taking in the revelation like a sponge. Finn guessed that Flint never really talked about his feelings, so this surprised her.

"Uhm.." She was struggling with her words now. "You may join us, Pherrous. As long as you won't feel regret in leaving the battlefield behind for now." The Princess motioned him hither the keep.

"Princess, you can't be ser-" Cinnamonbun stopped, interrupted by the Princess' hand. Finn was taking special notice of Cinnamonbun now. He'd gained competence when he last left him sure, but he was never so demanding or questioning of the girl he'd sworn to protect.

"I'm allowing it, Cinnamonbun." Flame Princess took view of her knight, this time with a dominant look in her eyes, the red hue having an added flare.

Finn finally managed to step forward, when he noticed the keep doors were now opening. Cinnamonbun turned, grumbling to himself and walking with a large stride between steps toward the open castle doors. Flame Princess had resumed her walk, now right behind Cinnamonbun. As Finn crossed the threshold for the keeps doors, he couldn't help but feel sick that he was lying to her again. He knew he had too, it was for the greater good, but it didn't make it any better for him.

Inside the building, the walls were a polished red stone, seemingly a combination of quartz and bits of ordinary marble. It looked so astounding to Finn, because he had immediately stepped from the doors and into a great hall. There were pillars that rose to great heights on either side of him, revealing a large and open space with a beautiful, ambient red light that illuminated as much as it dared. There was also yet more polished stone for the floor (although this stone was entirely marble). This led to steps that rose a short ways, and then a large seat of power, obviously a throne. On those steps, the Flame Monarch rose to her seat, leaving Finn standing at the doorway some sixty feet back just gawking at the grandeur. Finn began moving forward, eyes still taking in the flood of impressive images. He noticed that between the spaces in the pillars, there were small, gilded doors that must've led to the rest of the keep.

"Pherrous, have you been here before?" Flame Princess called from a distance, Finn was still closing the gap. Finn finished his sight seeing and walked to the steps, where he bowed to keep his act going.

"No, I haven't your highness." Finn was beginning to feel more heat seep into his skin. Either it was getting hotter, or the chameleon potion wasn't protecting him from heat anymore like he thought it would.

"Just call me Flame Princess. I don't really like those ultra-formalities. Princess is enough."

"I wouldn't have figured that with *cough* Captain Serious as your personal guard. Forgive me if that's rude."

At first Finn didn't know if he had come off too casual with that comment, but then she gave a small and girly giggle followed by his heart giving a jump at the sound. _Come on Finn, how long are you going to do this? Look for the machine now that you're inside! _Finn nodded in reluctant agreement, and rose from his bow.

"Princess." Cinnamonbun had appeared from a door in the pillars to Finn's immediate right.

"It's finished the heat charge process. I've taken the liberty of inputting the place where it will strike. All that remains is for you to give the order."

"I see.." She glanced at CB, and as soon as she did her eyes shifted. They were no longer the red hued and serious eyes from before, these were the carefree and informal eyes she had used on Finn all those years ago. It didn't look like she was carefree and happy anymore, though. Those eyes revealed the sadness and burden of being the ruler of such a kingdom all these years, and at her young age no less.

"Hold off on it for now, alright Cinnamonbun? Lookout over the watch tower and keep an eye on the battle." Flame Princess honestly didn't seem to want to use the machine. She glanced back at Finn and sighed.

Cinnamonbun grunted, "Yes, Princess.." He lingered for a moment, eyeing her with almost seemed like a tried disdain before disappearing into the same door he'd sprung from.

_Well that's a sour way to treat your princess, CB._

"That machine.. I used it to defend my kingdom, and what do I get from the other nations? They attack me.." Flame Princess was speaking softly, somewhat directing this toward Finn.

_What does she mean, she used it to 'defend' her kingdom? _

"Uhm, Princess, if I may ask. What were you aiming for, the first time around?"

She looked at Finn as if he were asking something that was common knowledge, "The goo zombies, what else? Remember? I had made an announcement about those goo monsters coming out of the crater. So, I had Cinnamonbun use the fire giant to incinerate them."

Finn couldn't believe what he was hearing. None of this matched up with what Princess Bubblegum had told Finn, and it certainly didn't match up with what he had seen. Sure they had hit a crater with the fire giant, but the wrong half of it. _Maybe.. this is…_ Finn's thoughts weren't so personal.

Finn gasped under his breath, "_That'd be a hell of a misunderstanding..._"

"What is?" Flame Princess with her head cocked to the right side, let her flaming locks hang past the front of her shoulders. Her brow was furrowed and her eyes were trained solely on his own. Finn felt relieved when he noticed her eyes hadn't reverted to the red gems of responsibility as he'd come to known them from before.

"Uh, I just got to thinking was all."

"Oh? Please tell me, I've got nothing to do right now but wait for the time to pass."

Finn didn't look so sure if he should. This wasn't his mission, and he wasn't sure if wasting anymore time in this form was a good idea. Regardless, he decided to explain it quickly.

"What if this entire war was a misunderstanding. What if they didn't know you acted out of self-defense?"

"What? That's crazy! I sent an emissary to explain to Bubblegum what was going on. Cinnamonbun returned with the news Bubblegum had declared war on the Flame Kingdom.

"Cinnamonbun?" Finn couldn't help but think maybe Cinnamonbun had somehow screwed up the interaction. He had been generally a lot more competent after getting "baked" but maybe he was still prone to the occasional slip-up. With this news, he couldn't help but think this whole ordeal warranted more investigation now. The mission may actually have to wait.

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**I'm sorry if I missed any words or any phrases that are just outrageously wrong or misspelled. :s**


	4. The Battle for Ooo -- Part 4

**Author's Note: Fourth chapter! Hell yeah! After having no time for anything at all whatsoever, thanks to college, I've finally continued this project. Just as a note, I generally read all my fanfics with the margins set to "1/2" and the background set to dark. **

**Just something about those settings that make reading on a screen far more enjoyable and easier on the eyes. Enjoy!**

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Finn's mind was quickly moving through the processes of confusion. Nothing had seemed to be making sense to him anymore: not this war, not the fact he felt conflicted about killing Flint, and definitely not the fact that Cinnamonbun may have started the entire thing in the first place. Cinnamonbun had never been anything other than a goof, but in the Princess' case, he was a helpful one. He had been capable of doing what Finn couldn't all those years ago: not be a lovestruck and bumbling idiot when she needed it.

"Princess," Finn had begun, "did you ever try explaining what had happened, yourself? Maybe they'd better believe it if you had come in person." Finn positioned himself directly in front of her throne, just a step below the ruler as he made himself seem more respectful. The Flame Monarch considered him for a moment, cocking her head slightly to the side and letting a very, very faint grin fall upon her features before she began, "I was going to, but Cinnamonbun insisted that he could take care of it himself, and I trust him with my life. There's no reason to doubt him."

_That's what I was afraid of_, thought the increasingly worried boy. Finn took a knee in her presence, which caused the Princess' grin to fade into something more akin to surprise.

Finn took a deep breath, "I know, but I'm sure there's been people you've trusted before that may have let you down."

The Flame Princess' features remained slightly surprised, an eyebrow of hers rising up as she began to study the soldier before her more thoroughly.

"You know, you're rather astute. Most of my citizens, military included, tend to blast things first and then talk to it later. You're … weird," she paused to stare at Finn, making him incredibly nervous. Did she know?

"Pherrous." She began. "What is your rank in my army?"

Finn was taken aback by the question, he hadn't thought that far ahead. Using some quick wit, especially the kind that kept him alive while he trained over the years, he responded plainly, "They didn't really tell me; they just sort of threw me into combat."

"So, you're new, then?" The Princess responded, eyes fixed only on his.

"Yes, Princess." He choked the words out. The Princess seemed to doubt his story, as was made evident to Finn as she rose from her throne, but before she could say anything, Cinnamonbun burst from a doorway.

"Princess! We can't wait anymore! The opposing army is getting closer, and they're at the best spot for the machine!" He sounded utterly rabid.

"Wha—Cinnamonbun, I told you to hold off." Came the annoyed voice of the girl.

"You don't understand, if we wait any longer it's not going to matter!" Came the sugary knight. Finn could only watch the exchange go back and forth, and yet he found himself calling into question Cinnamonbun's unusual tone of voice. Suddenly, though, Flame Princess sighed, and continued on with, "As I was about to tell the uh, soldier, here: maybe it's time I went and talked with the other armies. Maybe we can end this without further death."

Finn looked back at her with an expression of pure joy spreading across his face, but as he did so, the first instances of the potion began to dissipate, and the blueness of his eyes, the shape of their iris, and the unmistakable energy that exuded from them, caught the attention of the Flame Monarch. She turned to stare in confusion, and in turn caused the human's smile to fade into his own questioning look, but before she could ask the slowly transitioning Pherrous what was happening, the candy knight had broken the silence of the judgement.

"You can't do this!" Yelled Cinnamonbun.

"What do you mean I can't? It's my decision! You'd rather this end in blood?" Shouted Flame Princess, returning her gaze to her knight.

"What's going on here, the both of you?!" She turned back to face Finn, only his eyes had returned to normal thus far.

Finn sighed, and though he kept his peripherals trained on Cinnamonbun, he spoke, "I haven't been completely honest with you…"

"You've broken my law?" Came the shocked tone of her voice, a voice reminiscent of the day he had betrayed her. It pained him to hear her sound like that, yet again. At this moment in time, he wished to be anywhere but here, to be on the receiving end of not her flame, but her pained and saddened look as it burrowed into his soul.

"Enough." The voice of Cinnamonbun became inordinately thunderous and much deeper in tone. It bounced off the walls of the hall, clearly ending the line of dialogue between the two and finalizing the growing suspicions of the human as every muscle in his body tensed up, preparing for what was to come.

"Cinnamonbun?" The Princess had turned to whisper at him, her confusion now mixing with fear and shock on a level she didn't know was possible.

"Idiot elemental." Resounded his raspy voice, as loud and as clear to them as if he were standing only within a few feet. He began to walk from the gilded door, approaching the steppes leading toward the throne. As he did so, Finn slowly maneuvered for the cobalt item upon his back, but he faltered as he remembered the potion had hidden it from him. Nevertheless, he made himself ready to spring upon the advancing candy person anyway.

Flame Princess glanced at them both quickly, her mind was almost dazed from the situation, "Both of you, stand down! Now!"

As she yelled, her flames grew more intense, the heat of which radiated quite clearly through the palace, giving him a quick reminder of how powerful she truly is. However, this didn't seem to faze the candy person, as he continued to march toward them without even flinching.

"Cinnamonbun! I gave you an order!" She began to yell louder, her hair standing on end with the power of her growing fury. Though, Finn knew she wasn't going to strike at him, and not doing so would be a fatal mistake. With a deliberate motion, Cinnamonbun raised an arm, and from the fingertips of the candied exterior, ripped forth the crooked bones of an enemy known far too well to Finn and his old and furry companion.

"The Lich." Finn growled.

"What…?" Flame Princess trailed, her voice and fire dimming in this realization. However, before she could ask anything else, the skeleton's hand launched his own version of flames, green and diabolical, toward the Monarch. Finn's reflexes had taken grip of him long before his mind had made the conscious effort to move. Before the Lich's evil power had gotten anywhere near the Princess, Finn had put himself between her and the flame. The force of the flame didn't burn him, it merely slammed into the boy, pinning him into the Monarch and knocking them to the side of the throne room. As the flames on either side of him began to assault his skin, the effects of the chameleon potion faded away, taking with it whatever brief and small shield he may have had from the heat.

They both landed with a resounding "Ooof!"

As Finn quickly came to his senses, he removed himself from the Princess for both personal and painful reasons. While doing this, he noticed his hands and arms had returned to their initial state. The effects of the potion were completely gone, and there was no more hiding himself now. He turned away from her, both out of shock and embarrassment, but also to face the looming threat that was still fast approaching. Flame Princess looked up from her twisted supine position to see the back of a person she didn't recognize. Tall and lean, clad in white and blue, an unfamiliar sword of a darker shade of blue itself hanging from a loop in the figures backpack.

"Backpack?" She thought. It was then that her gaze normalized, and she looked up to see the twin ears of a polar bear hood that was the cornerstone piece of a certain hero of Ooo.

"Finn?" Came the weakly voice of the Princess. Finn turned only his head, catching a sideways glance at her, his facial features a sullen kind of expression, as if he were already trying to apologize for everything. He knew now wasn't the time, however.

"Can you stand?" He asked. Calm and clear, there was no time for emotions and certainly not for nonsensical explanations. If she couldn't stand on her own and without his help, this was going to be far more difficult.

"I—yes." She replied.

"Then get up. He's coming this way." Finn pointed to the top of the steps they had fallen from, a figure engulfed in an almost opaque green flame slowly approaching them as bits and pieces of Cinnamonbun began to slide from the rest of the skeleton, the Lich emerging little by little as his magical disguise then disintegrated. As she rose to her feet, not taking her eyes off of the blue-and-white clad young man in front of her, she felt a rising confliction of emotions: _Finn, this man, he killed my brother. _

Though Phoebe hadn't particularly liked him, he was still her brother; her kin. Though she had opened her mouth, her eyes and eyebrows contorted in pure anger, she was immediately stopped by the outcry of Finn.

"I don't have time for this, FP. I'll hear whatever you have to say and take whatever punishment you want to give me, but only after this war is stopped and the Lich is defeated!" Finn's voice was unfazed by the situation, hardened and tempered by the years he had spent by himself, learning to survive on his own. He was confident, even now, as if he could take both her and the Lich on if need be. This tone of voice was not what she had been expecting; a serious Finn, one that had his mind set on the biggest problems at hand.

It annoyed her.

Where was this Finn when she had needed him? These thoughts had drained her of time to prepare, as she looked up, the Lich, who the final bits of Cinnamonbun had begun to melt off of, had another fiery blast ready, and this time it looked primed to blow the whole room apart. Before the Lich could cast his deadly spell once more, Finn reached at his back again, this time finding the object he had been sorely missing: the crystal blue cobalt sword, rematerialized and ready for action. He drew it with expert speed and skill, the blade making the familiar metallic echo as it vibrated at his touch. The Lich drew back, not out of fear, but because he was focusing his fiery magic upon them, and in a flash, it was loosed like an unstoppable torrent. He had begun laughing, and it was the deep maniacal cackling that only a demented and empty soul could muster.

Phoebe froze like a deer, she was uncertain as to whether this fire could actually hurt her, but she had never seen such eerie green flames. However, Finn wasted no time in swinging his arm, and from that arm, the blue blade released an arc of energy all its own. It surprised both Phoebe and Finn as it not only collided with the green blaze, but actually severed the stream of magic down the middle, dissipating it as it was thrown off course.

The Lich wasn't looking, still laughing madly as he let loose every drop of his power, and then, boom. The blue energy had struck him, the series of bones that he had been, instantly disassembling and flying toward every corner of the room. Phoebe attempted to step forward, walking past Finn and moving toward the bottom step of her throne, but she was stopped by a hand on her shoulder that quickly recoiled.

"Ow." Finn said as he shook his fingertips.

"It's not over. He'll just reassemble." Finn finished, casting her a look of serious attitude.

"You're kidding me…" Flame Princess trailed. With this in mind, she morphed and flew upward toward her throne to get a better look at the surroundings. Sure enough, some of the bones had begun to move on their own, pulling toward a central figure that was slowly fixing itself.

His thoughts for her safety briefly flashed through his mind, but quickly he resolved to examine his weapon instead, believing she could hold her own if at least for a second. It won't last long, Choose-Goose as told him. Earlier that day he had taken a practice swing with the weapon, expecting it to react like a regular sword, but he had been severely shaken when it had loosed such a power. It was then he realized what he meant. There was a small crack running along the hilt of the blade, and after that second usage, the crack had deepened considerably.

Finn, sword gripped tightly in hand, ran out front of the steps to see the Lich finishing his second resurrection, completely unfazed at the event.

"You amuse me: you always have a trick up your sleeve." He begun to step forward once more. The clattering of his bones grew louder with every step, the hideous sound that it was by itself was only amplified by the destruction the Lich could bring.

"If only you'd—AUGH!" Cried the Lich, a blindingly bright flash of fire striking him with earthshattering force, pinning him quickly against a nearby column.

As the fire died down, the Princess spoke, "Just shut up. I don't want to hear it. Now, what have you done with Cinnamonbun!"

The Lich fell to his knees, reeling from the force of the blast, but he quickly regained balance at a pace more machine than either a human or even a demon. He folded his arms behind his back as he straightened out. Finn made special note of that before training the tip of his sword on the evil being, making sure to stand side by side with the enraged Monarch and nowhere near the front of her.

Ignoring the Flame Monarch, he turned to Finn, "Boy, you should have stayed on the front lines where death would soon come swift."

This enraged the Flame Princess, "Answer me!" She flared up, her dreadnought form taking full effect, causing Finn to stagger sideways to avoid being burned. The Lich turned his head, creaking bone against bone as he gazed upon the girl as one would an annoyance.

"Quiet." He commanded her, and all things in the room, all sound and energy, were drained in an instant. Her flames disappeared almost instantly, darkening the room to its previous level. Her mind fell into a deep sleep, the magic of the monster more than capable of subduing her. As for Finn, however, he had broken into a mad dash to catch the monarch before she slammed into the floor, her matrix a sickly gray, almost cool to the touch, but still warm enough that he could tell she wasn't dead.

"What did you do to her?!" Finn demanded. The Lich could only hesitate at the shock before him, obviously somewhat surprised the boy was still moving. He begun to step forward again, obtaining a clearer image of this scene new to his eldritch wisdom.

"You still move?" He craned his head, still closing the distance between them. Finn put Flame Princess gently on the floor, taking her arms and laying them on her abdomen before rising to turn to the Lich.

"You take one more step, and I'll show you just how well I can move." He flashed his sword at the Lich, of which, the boned monstrosity paused his step, but only made deadpan expressions at the blade.

"It matters not, and I believe I've wasted enough time." The Lich spoke plainly. Finn dropped the tip of his sword slightly, but quickly straightened it again. Before Finn could charge, the Lich's bones began to crumble and break apart into dust, moving quickly to the door he had emerged from so many minutes ago.

"No.." Finn whispered. "The machine!"

Finn bent back down to Flame Princess, shaking her head and yelling, "Wake up!"

He spent several seconds doing that before the sheen of her fiery body began to return and her eyelids fluttered open.

She rubbed her eyes as she started to sit up, "What … happened?"

Finn shook his head, and then replied, "The Lich used some kind of spell on you. I guess it didn't work on me."

"Where is he?!" She snapped, suddenly remembering her anger. She flared up once more to look around the great hall.

"He went back through that door. I think he's going to start the machine!" Finn pointed back the side hall door. Before Finn could help her up, she once again turned into her gigantic fiery form and barreled off through the doorway.

"Nice plan FP. Really." He sighed, sheathing his sword before taking off in a dead sprint, following the trail of destruction the monarch had left on her anger fueled rampage.

Down the hallway Finn ran, a trail of black and charred rock before him as he followed it to the end, suddenly watching it ascend up a spiraling staircase of a tower.

"Math," he said with a huff. He began to climb it, sometimes taking strides of two steps up the stairs, moving as quickly as possible as the worst case scenarios began to flash through his thoughts. He wasn't going to fail anyone this time, never again.

* * *

**I hope you guys liked the chapter. If I missed anything grammatically important or if I misspelled anything, feel free to leave a review chewing me out, or PM me about it if it's literally that bad (pls am sorey). I will continue this story, probably with a couple more chapters or so, then add another chapter onto my vampire related fanfic. Aaaand while I'm at it I'm going to roll out yet another series. Good stuff. This new series is actually what drew me back into writing, as it was originally the idea I had been developing the whole time.**

**Anyway, feel free to critique my writing, and I'll try to incorporate that into my next chapters.**

_**Also, I will be performing housekeeping on the previous chapters soon, as now that I'm looking back on them, they're a mess.**_


	5. The Battle for Ooo -- Part 5

For Flame Princess, getting to the machine had been her only concern. The war was no longer her priority; it was to keep the thousands of souls below them from dying to a Lich controlled superweapon. It was the only one left after Bubblegum had destroyed the rest, however, Phoebe secretly wished that Bubblegum had finished the deal. The moment that Finn, despite being wary of him, had told her what the Lich had done, wasting time worrying about a repeat incident with the Lich's power wasn't going to happen. Though, she had wondered why the Lich waited for her command; if he were truly a beast that only brings death, why wait? It boiled her blood that the Lich had been using her the entire time, long-term goal understood or not. Adding in the fact that Cinnamonbun was probably dead only primed her for the most explosive discharge of power she would ever willingly release in her life. She thought of Finn when she had rushed by: he had said something, but she didn't quite register it. She'd grown far too furious with both him and this monster to care.

It didn't matter.

Getting to the top of the spire, the observation floor that had been used to supervise the weapon, was fairly simple for her. Up the steps she had went in her enflamed form, rounding the spiral staircase with ease until the familiar architecture of the top filled her vision. The stone archways that held up the roofing of the circular room doubled as windows, places where the sun of a distant orange-red on the horizon could shine through with nary a cloud in sight. Somewhere below them would be the giant, and of which, the Lich had been messing with a metallic panel, the control panel, with its glowing red lights and dials that illuminated the interior of the tower, revealing the sinister features of the evil monster even as he was turned away from her.

"Get away from there!" Phoebe let her form expand and grow, which would have been intimidating had this not been the embodiment of fear she were talking to. The Lich turned to look at her, but this time around, the girl didn't give him a chance to speak. The monarch shot off like bullet and flanked the skeleton, being careful to only slam into the Lich and not the control panel. The Lich was knock off his feet, barreling right and into one of the archways, slightly cracking the stone as the concussive force shook through the tower. Unwilling to let up, Phoebe continued an onslaught of fire, a continuously streaming line of flame, aimed mostly at the vicious creatures face. All the while she kept her back on the control panel, guarding it against the evil at all costs. She figured that, if she could at least prevent him from speaking, he couldn't perform his magic.

However, as fate would have it, it wasn't that simple. The Lich stood up in the face of the flame, the force of which having lost its charm on the ages old creature as if he were adjusting to the weight of a new planet. He stared through her power, through the bright and brilliant flames that licked at his bones in vain, and then directed his gaze into her own. Phoebe stood utterly horrified, so much so that she had let her flames die down, returning her to her more docile form. The sheer horror that she, the arguably strongest power in all of Ooo, was helpless against this heap of bones was more than enough to freeze her on its own.

Phoebe was stuck, eyes locked on the Lich who just stared back at her. Then, with his skeletal arms creaking and swinging at his sides, he drew closer to her. Each step was the beating of a defeated drum, not matching at all the speed of her own heart that begged her to run. She couldn't run, though. It was her duty to face this, even if dying was certain and her body wouldn't fight.

The Lich had closed the space and Phoebe had stopped meeting the malicious gaze, opting instead to stare off into nothing and let her mind fade to black as demise approached. She considered firing yet another blast at him, but her fear quickly overtook the thought. The Lich continued to stare for a moment, only a breath away from her now. Suddenly and violently, he gripped at her throat with one fluid and demonically fast motion, raising her from the floor until her eyes met his.

"Even fires must go out." Droned the Lich, the tiny green pupils within his sockets revealed no emotions, only apathy. Dropping his jaw, a black storm of putrid magic poured forth from the literal maw of destruction itself. Phoebe clenched her eyes shut, terror spreading over her features as the mass approached her.

But it never even touched her.

A familiar blue arc of energy sliced swiftly through the air, sawing the arm bones of the Lich clean through. The Lich recoiled in surprise, causing the black mass to dissipate as his arm fell with the girl to the floor, the Princess landing with an inelegant _oof_. Finn had emerged from the tower staircase with initially mild exhaustion, but it quickly vanished as he noted the scene before him. Wasting no further time, Finn closed the gap between he and the Lich with dizzying speed, taking hold of the cobalt sword's hilt in both hands and striking from below at the hinge of the jaw, severing it from the skeleton's face. It fell to the ground with a clatter. At the same time, another blue arc of energy materialized from the swing, and something akin to yet more uncharacteristic surprise filled the space of the Lich's tiny pupils, at least, while he had them.

Point blank, the energy exploded, blasting through the Lich and opening a hole in the roof above. The skull, horns and all, had been obliterated; only the spinal column from which it once sat remained. Finn had clearly dazed the Lich, as he raised his hands to search for his eyes, stumbling backward quite a ways and then slipping from the ledge of one of the arched windows. Finn rushed to watch him fall, examining the body as it fell from the impressive height, landing with a sickening, yet satisfying _thunk. _

Nodding in recognition of a brief victory, Finn turned his attention toward the mortified girl and sheathed the now critically damaged sword, cracks spreading around every inch of the blade. Phoebe, who was sitting dazed beside the controls, hadn't moved a muscle. The spire being fairly small, he had moved to her side in the space of a blink, gazing first to the controls and then to her as he knelt to her side.

"Are you okay? Did he start the machine?" Came his frantic questions. She slowly turned to meet his gaze, utterly stupefied.

"H-How," she broke, "did you do that, Finn?" Her voice was as about as clear as a muddied pond, broken and dejected, almost raspy at times. Though, she had just been strangled.

"My fire," she paused, pleading with him through her eyes, "why wasn't it working on him?" Finn looked at her, slightly confused but he soon relaxed as he took her perplexed state to mean the giant hadn't been activated.

He scratched his head, dawning an expression of modesty, "I'm not sure. I kind of get the upperhand whenever the Lich is involved."

She stared at him in disbelief, totally dumbstruck, "You mean—you just get lucky?"

Finn shrugged, "FP, will smashing the controls stop the machine?"

Appalled at the thought, Phoebe stared back at him in amazement, utterly shocked at the suggestion, "You can't! If you smash the controls we can't use the machine for power! My people need that!"

"Then how do you turn it off?" Finn was being calm with her, not willing to escalate her anger and therefore the situation with his own impatience.

"Well," she paused, "he can't use it anyway; not without my jewel," she finished very quietly, pointing at her symbol or royalty.

"You—you came up here anyway?!" Finn's patience hadn't lasted long, his voice reflecting a mixture of estranged horror and baffled confusion. Though, he shouldn't have been surprised, this is how she always acted in a fight: direct and impulsive.

"He killed Cinnamonbun! I didn't care about anything else! Besides, the Lich probably didn't know that."

"Or," Finn patronized, "He went along to bait you, knowing you'd wake up. Probably didn't expect you to get here as fast as you did."

She looked down, obviously stunned and heartbroken by the loss of her friend, and confused by the fact she'd been reprimanded by someone who is supposed to be an enemy. Finn just looked at her, a mildly disapproving demeanor shooting from his eyes, but in the end he could only shake his head. What's done is done.

"You need to get out of here. Now." He commanded, his steely voice slamming home the urgency of the mistake she had made, only increasing the anxiety Phoebe now felt in the pit of her stomach.

Behind Finn, the eerie noise of tapping could be heard. The hairs on his neck began to stand on end, causing him to cast his gaze over his back, the creeping feeling of death retaking its hold of him in his gut like it does when danger nears. It was then he noticed the jaw he had sliced through earlier, the part that didn't turn to dust, was rattling back and forth, and then suddenly, it flew over the edge, undoubtedly piecing itself back together.

_He just won't stay dead, _thought Finn angrily.

"FP, I need to you to listen to me. Even if you hate me, you need to do this." He moved his face close to her own, his blue eyes more serious than she'd ever remembered them to be in her life. They painted a perfect contrast with the sunset that now shined directly behind him, complementary orange and blue locked into a small, fleeting moment of time with one another, his irises became like beacons of hope on the horizon: distant, yet there they were. This scene had inexplicably calmed her and stressed her out in the same stroke; dealing with Finn was complicated.

_Damn him for being pretty, _thought the monarch. _This isn't the time, Phoebe._

"FP?" Finn was becoming worried that she had gone catatonic. However, just as he was about to check on the Lich, she reached out to him, but was careful not to touch his skin.

"Wait. Don't go," she caught his gaze, "what do I need to do?"

Leaning back to look at her, Finn smiled, "I need you to stop the armies; tell Bubblegum and the other monarchs what's happened. I'm not sure what his plan is, but I think he's just trying to destroy as much life in one go as he can."

"You want me to—what—you think they'll believe me?" Her reply was unsure, but her eyes revealed she was ready to trust him. Despite it going against the small part of her that still resented his involvement in the war, she knew she couldn't argue with him.

"Tell your army to stand down, and tell them I'm battling the Lich. Bubblegum knows better; she can be heartless sometimes, but she's not stupid."

Phoebe hesitated, "Wait, are you saying you're staying here? That's crazy!"

"FP, I can't risk him finding another way to activate your machine, and if you stay here you risk him getting your gem."

"But-" came her voice, but it was quickly interrupted.

"No! You need to do this, you'll be able to alert them much faster than me, anyway." Finn had reasoned and concluded this: there was no convincing him otherwise, now. She only looked at him, her expression softening into something more akin to a startling amount of worry, worry that he didn't think she would give for him. This just made him feel all the more guilty, because, at every step of the way, he's underestimated her.

"And, FP?" Finn's face was solemn, "I'm sorry, about your brother. He ..." Finn quieted himself, allowing now, while they had the one brief moment, to let the emotions wash over him and reveal his remorse. He knew it wouldn't be enough, just to be sad, but it's all he had to give her. Well, that, and his life, he supposed. Phoebe stared at him, examining his features, sifting through her own feelings as he began to wear his openly with his expression. This was more like the old Finn, the one that would apologize and not fully understand how to.

"It's Phoebe," she said, looking back at him with a weak grin. Finn's face was confused at first, giving her a puzzled expression, but then he quickly realized what she had said, and grinned back at her.

"Phoebe, huh? I—wow—I guess I had just gotten used to calling you FP for so long that I didn't ever bother to ask," he was happy, or at least as happy as the current situation would let him be. With this exchange over, Phoebe stood, turning toward the ledge of the tower. Finn took his cue to stand as well, taking his place at her side for what felt like the first time in ages. It was nostalgic, but not all of those memories were good. He shook his head.

"Are you sure?" She asked.

"About?"

"Fighting the Lich while I go get help. Are you sure you can do it?"

"Are you kidding me? I'm Finn Mertens, girl," he paused to unsheathe his sword, twirling it up into the air and catching it in his off-hand, "this is just what I do!"

With a sympathetic look, Phoebe turned away from him, taking her place at the edge of the tower and readying herself before glancing one last time at Finn.

She nodded, and literally like a bolt of fire, she was off-hurtling toward the armies and their leaders. As he watched her fly away, the grin that he had worn, then, slowly slid from his face, leaving only an expression of deathly serious intention. It had been a reassuring gesture, he thought, to tell her he'd be okay. In actuality, you can only get lucky so much, and against something like the Lich, something that even Death himself won't claim, luck is almost all you have.

Finn glanced down at his sword, seeing that the crack had lengthened and deepened to such an extent, it probably wouldn't last even another swing. He'd have to make it count. Finn walked over to the side of the spire, bending to his knees to peer over the edge. The sight before him, however, wasn't one of a skeleton that had pieced itself together: it was just the ground.

"Oh Glob, what," he panicked for a moment, moving to take a couple back steps as the tower's deathly height suddenly amplified the fear he felt. He stared at the edge in confusion, thinking of where he may have gone, but that's when the hairs on his neck stood on end again.

"Glob can't save you," came the low and guttural voice, reverberating with power and practically shaking the core of his body with each syllable.

"Not Grod, not Gob, not Grob," it finished out, each mentioning of a name only deepening the pit of despair Finn felt himself falling into. He turned his head, slowly, to see the Lich in all his horned and terrifying damnation, standing not even a foot behind him.

"I will kill them all with the machine, or one-by-one." His words were apathetic, his soulless, fleshless face was deadpan, and Finn knew in his heart that he wasn't lying: what could stop him?

Before Finn could react, the Lich had grabbed him with both of his massive, bony palms, squeezing him tightly into his secure grasp. Finn struggled and gasped, cobalt sword still in his own grip, trying to desperately move it into a position to strikes at the Lich, but to no avail.

"I-," Finn choked, "Will—stop you!"

At this, the Lich said nothing, but let his crushing grasp do the speaking for him. Finn could feel ribs beginning to give way under the force of his arms being pushed into his gut, the pain from such a thing was terrible. They were going to break any second now.

_Break, _he thought, and then looked at his sword. He maneuvered the cobalt sword, severely cracked as it were, the soft metal having been no real substitute for steel, into both his hands. With one hand on the hilt and the other at the tip of the blade, he brought a knee up and began an attempt to snap the blade. His hand cutting into the edge of the tip, blood running down his fingers as he increased the force behind it.

_"If this kills me, I'm sorry Phoebe, I tried."_

With a final give of the blade, the entire shaft of the blade shattered into two pieces, bits of crystalized metal falling below him. Finn felt triumph and despair assail him all at the same time, waiting for a glow of blue to either become his savior, or an underling of death. He waited, but sickening realization hit him harder than it ever had before: nothing was happening. Then, Finn threw his head back in shock as he felt the first rib break in two, an elbow pushing into soft tissues with extreme ferocity. He dropped the sword pieces, gasping for breath as the Lich began to steal even that.

The pieces hit the floor, and suddenly a spark flew between the two, unbeknownst to Finn until it began filling the spire with an extremely bright, vibrant blue light.

With a smirk spreading over his lips, he could only mutter, "Stupid sword."

* * *

Phoebe blasted through air and space, desperately trying to close the gap between her and the battlefield. It wouldn't take her very long either way, but she knew every second counted for the lives of everyone there. She quickly came upon the masses of the armies, her own having dug in with lava moats around the entrance to her Kingdom, taking up a turtling stance and, she made note, impressively defending their home. On the other side, the armies of the Wildberry Kingdom and Candy Kingdom were using catapults to strike with gigantic ice blocks. She immediately zipped to the ground, landing at the center of the Fire Kingdom battlements. Her soldiers began to turn and gawk at her, astounded that their monarch had joined them on the front lines, but immediately, their astonishment turned to horror.

Phoebe rose an eyebrow as they began to yell, "Look out!"

When she turned around, it was immediately obvious they were talking about the block of ice falling toward her, but with a simple motion of her arm, she sent out a heat wave that she'd hoped would vaporize the block before it could ever reach her, but it was still about the size of a pebble when it landed on her face.

Her troops cheered, and some seemed to get humor from the event, but before they could do either for long, she began to yell, "To all the commanding officers here, I am ordering you to stand down."

The cheering instantly vanished, turning into grunts of disbelief and some flaring up in anger.

"Are you nuts?!" Someone called.

"I thought you were our King!"

"Why should we?" Came someone else. Phoebe quickly grew annoyed, and in the space of a second, she exploded into her behemoth form with exaggerated practice, quieting everyone there.

She then spoke as loudly as she could, loud enough that she hoped the otherside could hear it as well, "The Lich has tricked us all! He is the cause of this war, I've seen him myself! My dear companion, and brave knight Cinnamonbun, has been murdered by him."

The quietness hadn't livened up any, they merely watched her as the news spread from her lips.

"Have I ever steered you wrong before? I'm asking you, please, trust me! The Candy and Wildberry Kingdoms don't know we were just protecting ourselves!" She yelled out to them, everyone, no matter the person. She had looked around to still see the questioning stares upon their faces, when, to her immediate relief, a familiar voice spoke up from behind a stone palisade.

"The Lich?" Little Flambo, the friend of Finn and Jake, hopped out, putting himself directly in his King's sight.

"Come on guys, it's the Lich! Do we ever back down from a fight?" He encouraged them, and suddenly the crowd of faces were less tense, even almost eager to teach the new intruder a lesson. A rise of fists and fire flew into the air, and the Princess let out a large sigh of relief.

"Everyone, back to the Fire Kingdom!" She commanded. Files of soldiers began to pour of the battlements, rank by rank, assembling into a shoddy line, but moving quickly toward the main gates of the Kingdom itself. Satisfied, Flame Princess once again rose into the sky, this time aiming herself at the enemy encampment on the other side. She shot off like a cannon, a streak of flame soaring across the open sky unmistakable as anything other than the Princess of Flames herself. She wanted to be absolutely sure to stop the armies before something happened to Finn, though she knew it would probably give the wrong message to charge them so recklessly.

She had quickly passed the enemy troops below her, knowing full well that they wouldn't listen to the pleas of the enemy king. She headed straight for the tents on the horizon, the base camp that had been the source of the invaders. There, she knew, is where she would find the other royals.

* * *

Princess Bubblegum had been watching from afar, the battle keyed in on one of her telescopes. The coalition had been a smart move, neither her own kingdom nor the Wildberry Kingdom had the ability to face down the land of fire themselves, and up until an hour ago, the troops had been progressing at a fairly steady rate. That is, until the Fire Kingdom had dug in, falling back behind their lava moats. None of the engineering corps dared to build a bridge over it, and every time the Ice King would get close, the soldiers of the Fire Kingdom would begin bombarding him, causing him to tuck tail and run, shrieking all the way back.

However, she had taken an extreme interest in what lay beyond those magma moats. The Flame Princess had not only, apparently, told her soldiers to retreat, but she was already on her way here. Shock slammed into her, and even though she had prepared for it, Bubblegum hadn't thought Phoebe would be rash enough to fight on the field herself. From the top of an observation deck, Bubblegum jumped to the grassy ground and landing in the middle of camp, the tents being devoid of troops, and more importantly to Bubblegum, devoid of incessant chatter that that brought with it.

She ran as fast as she could in her dress, out of the camp and into the forest that lay just beyond the boundaries. She had begun to search for the one thing that had the ability to stand against such a super power: a gumball guardian. She had ordered one of them to follow from the Candy Kingdom and hide here just for this occasion; insurance against the possibility the dubious monarch would give them a personal visit. It turned out it was a good idea.

The sound of crunching leaves and snapping twigs alerted the guardian long before he'd seen his Candy Monarch. He shifted his position, as he needed to lay prone so as to not give himself away to the distant army.

"Guardian! Get ready, the Fire Princess is on her way!" Bubblegum commanded, panting from the sudden exertion. Without missing a beat, the Guardian rose, standing to his full height and then reaching for his creator. With her in hand, he walked back to the center of the camp, his eyes fixed on the distant heat signature that was rapidly approaching them.

"Target locked." Replied the Guardian, his massive footsteps and booming voice alerted the other monarch to his presence as he positioned himself squarely at the other edge of camp, taking special care not to step on any tents. Bubblegum took out her binoculars and zoomed in on the Flame Monarch; her face was hard to make out in the distance, but Bubblegum could tell that she was waving her arms.

_Huh,_ thought Bubblegum.

"Hold off on shooting her down, GG," she ordered, wishing not to jump straight to conclusions. The great giant looked at her in mild consideration, processing the gravity of the order, before returning its sights solely on the approaching king.

"You got it, Princess."

Crossing her arms, Bubblegum scowled, "If you're wanting to talk, you better not have hurt Finn," she muttered.

In only a matter of minutes, the Flame Princess had reached them. Despite the protests of Wildberry Princess below, Bubblegum waited patiently, curious to see what she could have to say. The fiery monarch landed before them at the edge of the camp, and Bubblegum promptly asked her Guardian to put her down before her. As he did so, Wildberry Princess boldly positioned herself next to the Candy Monarch despite her small stature, unwilling to let her steer this conversation merely in the direction of her own people.

"Have you come to surrender, Phoebe?" Bubblegum sounded quizzical, more puzzled at the fact she had drawn back her army more than anything. Even if she were to surrender, it wasn't a good strategy to give up the battle front.

As Phoebe stepped forward, she examined the faces of the two, both looking at her in mild contempt. Mentally she sighed, because what else could she do?

"No, and you need to listen to me, please," Phoebe's voice was strained, as if it were on the verge of breaking into a panic. Which, in truth, it was. She had left Finn the Hero all alone with the very thing that makes a living out of killing heroes.

Wildberry Princess scoffed, "Listen to you? After you've murdered so many for an expansion effort?"

Phoebe recoiled, appalled at her words, "Expansion effort? What?"

She shook her head, "What expansion effort? Wait, no—that's not what I need to talk about."

Bubblegum shifted her weight to her other foot, arms still crossed and observing the newcomer intently, "Wildberry Princess, let's just hear this."

Wildberry Princess looked up at her, obviously dissatisfied with the idea, but agreed nonetheless.

"Fine."

Phoebe nodded and cleared her throat, "It's the Lich. He's the one that started this whole war. Cinnamonbun—I don't know what happened, but somehow the Lich used him as a disguise. He was supposed to explain I had used the weapon to destroy the crater; some goolike zombies had started climbing out of it, and they were turning everything into one of them! I still don't know if he's still alive or not…" She trailed off, glancing up at the other two. Bubblegum had become skeptical at the first hearing of the Lich, but her features shifted to being that of a doting and worried mother when discovering the fate of one of her Candy Citizens.

"Cinnamonbun is dead?" Said Bubblegum, biting on the tip of her thumb, rolling in deep thought.

"As if I'm going to believe all this. You're desperate." The young Wildberry Princess held her stance firmly despite her size. It was kind of impressive to see, really.

"It's true! Finn is in danger!" Phoebe finally burst out.

"Finn?" Bubblegum narrowed her eyes. The fact that Phoebe knew of Finn wasn't a sure sign she was telling the truth, as she could have learned of his presence through rumors on the battlefield. This could all be a ploy to trick the both of them into dropping their guard.

"Phoebe, if what you say is true, then where is Finn now?" Bubblegum replied

"He said he was going to guard the controls to the machine. The Lich was going to use it to destroy all our armies." Phoebe was practically preaching this news now, yelling it as fact as one would at those who wish not to hear it. At least, as far as Wildberry Princess was concerned.

"You're lying." The Wildberry Monarch spat. At this, Phoebe's eye grew wide, the realization that she may not be able to convince them spread over her like a poison. Bubblegum continued to eye her curiously, taking in every expression.

"Then, I'll tell you this: the machine won't work if I'm not there to turn it on." Phoebe was reluctant to release this, but figured they probably wouldn't believe that either.

"Right, and so Finn decided to stay behind for no reason then?" Wildberry Princess was beginning to grate on Phoebe's nerves at this point, she was being unusually stubborn and sour.

"I'd believe you if the Lich weren't trapped in an organic shell right now. He's under the watchful eye of my ... banana guards." Bubblegum stated, not only dissatisfied with her own reasoning, but dissatisfied at the fact Finn is potentially in danger.

"You won't believe me.." Phoebe whispered, dumbstruck even though she knew it was a long shot.

Amidst the three, but closest to the Flame Princess, a sudden flash of white exploded into existence, the brilliance of which blinding them all, the fiery girl included. Blinking rapidly to clear the spots, Phoebe lowered her arms and look at the scene before her.

A white sword, shimmering from the remnants of its pearlescent entrance, had been embedded into the soft earth, hilt pointed toward Phoebe as if it wanted her to take it.

"That's… That's Finn's sword!" Cried Bubblegum, pure horror contorting her face into something unbecoming of a lady of her stature.

Bubblegum stared at Phoebe as she touched the sword, pulling it from the ground and lifting it into the air.

"It just can't be. The Lich—he shouldn't be active!" Bubblegum was frantic. She continued to resolve the impossibility of the Lich being restored, but she couldn't fight the event that had just happened before her. That was Finn's sword. It had, for some reason, come to Phoebe and not Finn, which could only mean something has happened.

Bubblegum straightened herself, her face filling with anger and conviction, "We're ending this. Now."

Wildberry Princess stared at Bubblegum with her mouth agape, unable to speak, and unable to move. The Gumball Guardian bent down to pick them both up, which shook her out of her momentary stupor.

"Hey—whoa!" Came the leafy princess of the wilds.

Phoebe gripped the sword tightly, confusion resurfacing in her heart, "This is … Finn's sword?" She muttered.

"Then … maybe that means—Oh no, Finn!" A thunderclap and scorched earth was all that remained of the Fire Princess as she rocketed back into the darkening sky, being in too much of a hurry to remember the fact that it is an impressive feat to break the sound barrier. Bubblegum watched her fly away, moving toward the distant post of the Fire Kingdom from which she had come.

Pointing in that same direction, Bubblegum commanded her Guardian, "Come on GG, I need to get to the front lines." The massive construct began to take hurried steps, then gradually broke into a run as it compensated for its immense weight, both hands carrying precious cargo.

As Phoebe flew, she brought the sword in her hands closer to inspect it, watching as the fire engulfed the blade but didn't seem to give way to the heat. She held it close, clutching it tightly so as to not drop it.

"You better be okay, Finn."


End file.
